Actress Olivia Wilde was on track to be one of the next great filmmakers. Her directorial debut, Booksmart (2019), received favorable reviews from critics and audiences alike. Her sophomore directorial endeavor led to a bidding war between eighteen studios, and with a star-studded cast, many believed Don’t Worry Darling would be another hit.
Continue reading “Review: ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ is 120 Minutes of Wasted Potential”
As a queer person, I love it when we are given visibility in narratives, and love it even more when our queerness isn’t just the only characteristic we have. The Old Guard, Netflix’s new film based on Greg Rucka’s fantastic graphic novels, is very satisfying in that regard, especially because queer visibility is important in every genre. Director Gina Prince-Bythewood’s combination of the comic’s gritty atmosphere and the common tropes in today’s superhero films, while good, still leaves a lot to be desired. Continue reading “Review: ‘The Old Guard’ is a Decent Adaptation with Some Great Representation”
If there was one takeaway from 2016’s Moonlight, the indie underdog that upset at the Oscars, it’s that writer/director Barry Jenkins is a rising talent in the industry. Only his second feature film, Moonlight established him as a talented filmmaker with a unique voice and an eye for the cinematic. If Beale Street Could Talk, an adaptation of the James Baldwin novel of the same name, is a film that certainly continues that reputation.
From a presentation standpoint, the film is undeniably one of the most beautiful films of 2018. Every shot feels so thoughtfully constructed; its maturity and grace parallels the weighty themes of the source material in an incredibly respectful and nuanced way. Each frame is a painting, and the direction, in all aspects, is meticulously crafted with a precision only seen in films by true masters of cinema. The camera has such a natural, almost dream-like movement to it that absorbs you into the world of the film. Shot in the Univisium 2.00:1 aspect ratio, it also provides a unique look only shared by 3 other major films this year. James Laxton, who was also the director of photography on Moonlight, is bound for another Oscar nomination and definitely a potential win. The score, arranged by Nicholas Britell, is gorgeous as well, providing a jazzy, low-key and subdued ambiance that somehow manages to overwhelm the audience in its beauty. The score, whenever present, permeates the film with its allure and grace.
The film’s best scene, however, is absent of any music, but of course is still a feast to the eyes: a long-take scene shared between Fonny (Stephan James) and Daniel (Brian Tyree Henry), with them simply chatting around a table in Fonny’s apartment, shot beautifully with close-ups through the haze of cigarette smoke. Henry, one of the breakout stars of 2018, appears in an extended cameo and delivers an incredibly powerful performance worthy of Best Supporting Actor. Even with the dream-like nature of the cinematography, the conversation and the subject matter of both the scene and the film seem painfully real and honest. It occurs chronologically before Fonny is falsely imprisoned for rape, and just 3 months after Daniel had been released from prison. Daniel is initially presented to the audience as a comedic, charming presence, but later on, in the same scene, he reveals to Fonny the brutal and terrifying world of the prison system and how it has shaped him. The camera holds on Daniel’s face and we witness his scared eyes underneath his hardened exterior. The performance is truly something special, and this entire scene is one of the most devastatingly real moments in film in 2018. And the movie is filled with powerful scenes such as this one.
Another powerful scene occurs when Tish (Kiki Layne) describes, in the form of narration, her experience working as a black woman in the perfume department of an expensive retail store in the early 1970s. She takes the job in an attempt to make enough money to bail Fonny, her fiance, out of jail, while also being pregnant with his child. Much of the dramatic and emotional tension of the film comes from whether or not Tish, along with her mother, Sharon (played expertly by Regina King), can prove Fonny’s innocence, making the financial struggles of Kiki and her family even direr. The crux of the scene in the store involves a “black cat” metaphor that she uses, which very intelligently sums up the themes of institutional racism, yet also highlights and celebrates the distance one will go for love, making the film so much more than just an ordinary romance.
If Beale Street Could Talk is a gorgeous film that shares the power of love and hope in the face of adversity. It speaks to the generations of black men torn from their families due to the institutional discrimination that continues to be perpetuated. It’s an important film that demands to be seen, a timeless story that will both resonate and devastate. There’s so much more to say about the film, but the main takeaway is this: it’s easily one of the best films of 2018, and Barry Jenkins has still got it.
Score: 5/5